terminal velocity
by Sane-in-Insanity
Summary: Dean/Castiel AU – They meet at church on a Sunday morning when neither of them wants to be there. Irony doesn't get more ironic than that.
1. dark side of the moon

_Note: This is a high school AU fic with End!Verse Castiel and non-hunting Dean. It's going to be mainly from Castiel's POV. _

* * *

**terminal velocity**

_They meet at church on a Sunday morning when neither of them wants to be there. Irony doesn't get more ironic than that._

* * *

"You're an absolute mess."

Basking in post-sex euphoria, Castiel barely notices the sound of Balthazar's annoyed voice. With a soft, pleased sigh, he turns to look at Balthazar, who's standing by the bathroom door, naked except for the measly towel that might as well be a handkerchief hanging off his waist. Even after so many times, Castiel can't help but drag his eyes all over Balthazar's chiseled body, smirking with appreciation.

"_And _you're shameless, you know that?" Balthazar says in his sexy British accent and pours himself a glass of Jack Daniels.

"I guess that's just how I roll," Castiel replies with a shit-eating grin. He glances at the two unconscious girls beside him, sprawled across the large bed. Strangely fascinated, he stares at the one with long, dark locks down to her waist, and sees milky residue at the corners of her mouth, and he can't help but chuckle. "A tiger, that one. My dick really, really enjoyed the way her mouth worked her magic. I think you finally have competition, Balthy."

Balthazar approaches the bed with two glasses of whiskey. "With all due respect, my only competition is another man with a deeper pocket." Now, _that _ought to have burned, but it is Balthazar and Castiel is, well, Castiel, so all is fair and good.

Balthazar hands him a glass of liquor, who—despite craving it with every nerve—declines.

"Sunday service tomorrow morning, which is something that I try to avoid being completely smashed whilst I attend," Castiel says. "I should go. It would not be a pretty sight if Father caught me sneaking out."

He rolls off the bed and slips into his jeans, managing to stay on his feet despite feeling like the world is tilted on its axis. He pulls on his flannel shirt and fumbles with the buttons and before he knows it, Balthazar is kissing the back of his neck and running his fingers across Castiel's abs, pinning him in position.

"Don't leave," Balthazar murmurs huskily, and Castiel has to resist the urge to turn around and kiss him back.

Instead of indulging his desires, Castiel sneers. "And you say I'm the shameless one." He closes his eyes and leans back into Balthazar, allowing himself to at least savor the last moments of bliss before he has to step out of Balthazar's classy penthouse and into the real world.

At this, Balthazar laughs, almost mockingly. "That's because you are, Cas," he whispers into Castiel's ear, and reaches down the front of Castiel's underwear to slip a wad of goodies in before stepping away.

Satisfied, Castiel casts a wink at Balthazar and makes his exit, ignoring the weight of his gaze from behind.

Once outside, Castiel pulls out the bundle of cash from his boxers, flips through the notes, and puts it in his pocket where it is safe and sound, and he can't help but smile.

Life is good.

* * *

Castiel dislikes surprises, therefore he really does not appreciate it when he climbs into his bedroom through the window and flips the lights on, only to see an angry looking Anna sitting on his bed.

"Why on earth were you in my room with the lights _off_?" Castiel demands in an incredulous whisper, itching to strip naked and have a long, steamy shower. Instead, he has to deal with whatever Anna is about to throw his way in the middle of the night.

"It's almost 3 am, Castiel," Anna says, still sitting on Castiel's bed.

Castiel sighs. "Can we do this later? I'm really tired."

At that, Anna jumps off the bed and storms up to Castiel, glaring. "That's because you were out whoring yourself all night!" She screeches.

Alarmed and on the verge of panicking, Castiel clamps his sister's mouth shut. "Be _quiet_, Anna. Do you want to wake the whole neighborhood?"

Anna slaps his hand away and manages to reach around Castiel to pull out his earnings from his pocket. "Do you want to explain what this is?" She holds it up in front of him.

"I earned it."

Anna rolls her eyes. "Yeah, by having sex with strangers in the middle of the night," she spits out. "Why are you doing this to yourself?"

Castiel snatches back his money before Anna could keep it for good. "You're my _sister_, not my mother. It's none of your business what I do." He starts undoing his shirt, not bothering to even look at her. "Get some sleep, Anna. We have Sunday service in a few hours."

He hears Anna's footsteps and a pause. "You better hope Father doesn't find out."

"Then it's a good thing you're not a snitch, right?" Castiel says with a good humored smile, knowing that no matter how many threats Anna sends his way, she would never sell him out to their Father. "Good night, sister."

The door closes, and Castiel exhales in relief.

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_Note2: Any thoughts or con-crits would be appreciated. Thank you!_


	2. are you there, god?

It would've been a pleasant morning for Castiel if it weren't for the loud banging on his already flimsy door. "We're leaving in ten, Cas!" Michael yells through his door, pounding impatiently. "Cas!"

"Coming!" Castiel replies. Still curled in the warm expanse of his quilt, he wishes a hole would just swallow him up so that he could sleep forever. No such luck, though.

With a weary sigh, he forces himself to get out of bed and takes a quick, cold shower to wake himself up for the day. After throwing on some worn jeans and jacket, he grabs an energy bar from the kitchen and gets into the car, squished in the backseat along with Anna and Gabriel.

The car is absolutely silent—a cue for Castiel to conjure up something resembling an apology. "I'm sorry I slept in," Castiel murmurs politely when met with a condemning stare from his father. "Won't happen again."

Anna shakes her head beside him, saying nothing, and Gabriel merely rolls his eyes. Michael, sitting in the front passenger's seat, flips on the radio station to diffuse the tension. Their father, always a man with words, doesn't bother to grace his apology with a response.

With that, the cheery Novak family heads off to church.

* * *

If there's one thing his father lets Castiel decide for himself, it is where he sits during the service. And so, Castiel picks a spot on the empty bench near the exit, leans back and lets his eyelids fall shut.

It isn't long before his much-needed shuteye is interrupted by someone plopping down next to him. Castiel glances at the intruder, who's full on staring at him with slightly widened eyes. The guy blinks a few times, coughs a little, and looks away. Castiel doesn't miss the way he shuffles a little away from him.

Castiel sneaks another look at the familiar face. Where has he seen him before? Castiel isn't really a social butterfly, so the only people he knows are either from church, school or his—job. He knows this stranger isn't a past client of his, because he would _definitely_ remember someone like him, so he's probably from school.

Castiel turns to look at guy (who goes by the name of Dean Winchester, if Castiel's memory is to be trusted), really looking this time. His eyes automatically scan him from head to toe, liking what they see because damn, Dean Winchester is _fine_. Dean seems to notice Castiel's unabashed scrutiny, because he squirms a little. Deciding to give the guy a break, Castiel turns to the front, fixing his eyes on the droning priest.

Not long after, Castiel eyelids begin to droop.

"You don't seem like you want to be here," Dean comments quietly.

The initiation of a conversation takes Castiel by surprise, because judging by Dean's earlier reaction it doesn't seem like he wants to have anything to do with Castiel. Nonetheless, Castiel says, "Neither do you, really."

Dean merely shrugs. "I'm here with my brother. He's the religious nut, not me." Dean appears to realize what he just said, because he doubles back a little bit. "Uh, sorry, I didn't mean…"

Castiel chuckles. "Relax. I don't bite." _Well, I do, but I don't think we're quite there yet._ "It's the rest of my family you have to look out for." His lips curl into a lazy smirk. After a moment's hesitation, he extends his hand. "I'm Castiel."

Dean shakes his hand with an easy smile. "From school, right? Name's Dean." By then, the ceremony has ended, and people are getting up from their seats, shuffling about. "And here's Sam," Dean says when a kid just a few years younger than the both of them walks over to them, towering over both of the older boys.

The kid glances at Castiel, a look of recognition flashing in his hazel eyes. "Oh, are you Castiel?" A sunny smile lights up his youthful face. "It's great to finally meet you!"

Castiel raises an eyebrow. "It is?" He says, confused. "I mean, it's nice to meet you too, Sam." He shakes the hand that Sam is eagerly holding out.

"Dean's mentioned you a few times and—"

The older brother coughs loudly. "_Alright_, that's enough, Sammy." Dean interrupts with gritted teeth. He smiles at Castiel a little too widely. "Sorry man, Sam's got you mixed up with someone else. Gotta go. See you tomorrow…or something." Dean finishes hurriedly and drags Sam away and out of the church, leaving Castiel amused and bewildered.

"Is that Dean Winchester?" Anna appears at Castiel's side, staring at the Winchesters' retreating form.

"Yeah, you know him?"

Anna shakes her head, her red locks of hair bouncing around her face. "No, but everyone else at school seems to."

"Interesting," Castiel replies, more intrigued now.

"They say he's a rather decent guy, especially for someone as 'popular'," Anna says as they walk out of the hall. "Don't corrupt him."

Castiel flashes his sister a grin that promises otherwise.

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_Note: If you have any advice/feedback, feel free to share :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter!_


	3. it's a terrible life

One unfortunate thing about having a goody-two-shoes for a younger sister is that she always drags you to school early along with her, no matter how much you protest. After a few years, Castiel is nothing if not used to this.

As if responding to his thoughts, Anna says as they step out of the bus, with their school just thirty seconds away, "You'd think that after years of being nagged by me in the morning, you would actually _try _to be on time yourself."

Castiel raises his eyebrows. "That is the problem, dear sister. You insist on being _early_, not 'on time'. There's a difference."

Whatever Anna has to say next, Castiel doesn't hear because his attention shifts to a conspicuous black muscle car pulling into the parking lot. He sees the distinctive automobile most mornings, and while he approves of the driver's taste, he has never given much thought to the driver himself. Therefore, imagine Castiel's surprise when he sees the one and only Dean Winchester step out of the vehicle. Another figure, Sam, emerges from the car and promptly heads towards the junior campus which lies on the west wing.

"Oh, there's Dean," Anna points out belatedly. She nudges Castiel in the ribs. "Are you going to talk to him?" They reach to a halt near the front entrance where they are supposed to go separate ways.

Dean meets Castiel's eyes, all the way from the car park. Castiel waves nonchalantly, still rooted to the ground, wondering if he should wait for Dean. He looks to his side, only to see that Anna is gone. Good timing, too.

Castiel decides to wait, so he leans against the fence, hands buried deep in his pockets and stares at Dean's approaching figure with a smirk toying on his lips. Dean awkwardly rubs the back of his neck, and Castiel suddenly wonders if Dean is feeling self-conscious or something.

"Good morning, Dean," Castiel greets, pushing himself off the wall once Dean joins him.

"Hey," Dean mumbles, flashing a quick smile, falling into step beside Castiel, keeping at a distance.

As Castiel walks beside the Winchester, he can sense the discomfort practically radiating from him in waves. It still remains a mystery to him as to why Dean is so—frigid around him. He tries his best to ignore Dean's obvious awkwardness.

"Nice car you got there," Castiel says lightly, glancing at Dean to gauge his reaction.

Dean looks down with a small grin and seems to loosen up just a little. "Thanks. Passed down from my dad, actually," he answers. "So, uh…about yesterday, sorry about all that."

"About all what?" Castiel asks, not entirely sure what Dean is getting to. _Oh_, that. "You mean what Sam said? Don't worry, Castiel's a rather common name." He chuckles, wondering if he's gone a bit too far.

Dean coughs loudly, ears flushing red. "Yeah, tell me about it."

Castiel is about to say something, but someone else cuts him off.

"Dean!" A female voice calls, and without warning, a figure practically tackles him from behind, startling both him and Castiel.

"Hey Lisa," Dean replies, a fond smile lighting up his face as he bends down to give her a chaste peck on the lips. Castiel looks at Dean's mouth, absently wondering how they would feel like pressed hard against his. "How was Gordon's party?"

Lisa grins so brightly, it's like the Sun lighting up the sky. "It was great! You should've been there though. Ash made a total fool out of himself and almost got his ass busted," Lisa says with a laugh and grabs Dean's hand.

Feeling like a stupid third wheel, Castiel starts to walk away quietly, hoping to leave undetected, but it doesn't escape Dean's notice.

"I'll see you around, Cas," he says suddenly.

Castiel casts him a lazy smirk, and just to spice it up a little, he winks at Dean before walking away. He throws a quick glance behind his shoulder, only to see Dean rooted to the spot staring at him with a slack jaw. Castiel turns away, chuckling to himself.

It's a good day already.

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_It's a bit slow paced, I know, but bear with me! Did you like it? Feedback would be nice :)_


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